Dear Rachel Maddow: Alaska IS a Socialist State. Don't Be Surprised By The BERNIE Sticker

[TrollBuster9090]

Don't be surprised by the BERNIE sticker in Deadhorse Alaska.

Yeah, I know, we're all aware of this....but I wish people in the media would talk about it MORE!

Alaska is a SOCIALIST STATE that believes in the REDISTRIBUTION OF WEALTH. They just happen to be in a deep, DEEP state of denial about it.

Since 1976, Alaska has been taxing money from the oil industry, putting it into a trust fund called the Alaska Permanent Fund, and MAILING OUT CHECKS to EVERYBODY in Alaska.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/09/17/us-usa-dividend-alaska-idUSKBN0HC2E320140917

The fact that this policy was brought in by a REPUBLICAN Governor (Jay Hammond) does not make it any LESS of a SOCIALIST POLICY.

Dear Alaska: THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT NORWAY does! YOU ARE A SOCIALIST STATE! Come out of the closet and be PROUD of it!

[bravenak]

1. So true.

At the end of summer we'll hear all the ads on the radio trying to convince us to spend our dividends early on whatever crap they're selling. I'm getting a new bed with my socialism check. Yay!
Btw: We know it's socialism, but we think we EARNED it. See? Exceptional socialism in Alaska.

[TrollBuster9090]

2. Yep, it's just a labelling thing.

The socialists need their own FRANK "F#ck You Frank" LUNTZ to work in the terminology.

But personally, I like the Norwegian system better. They've put all their oil revenue money into a PENSION FUND for all Norwegians. So that each Norwegian now has a government pension fund with $1,000,000 in it. No bullshit discussions about problems with Social Security, and having to force their Senior Citizens to eat DOG FOOD in Norway, I tell ya.

[bravenak]

3. We need that system.

[TrollBuster9090]

4. Oh man, if only the entire country had adopted that system from the start of the oil boom.

We'd NEVER have gotten into this mess. There'd be no B.S. about "reforming entitlement programs," there'd be no national debt....

[bravenak]

5. We don't really care about people as much as we do about business in this nation.

[malokvale77]

6. ^^^ this ^^^

In comparison, the citizens of Texas have received nada from all the oil and gas pumped from the commons.

We have however allowed a select few to become very wealthy from our natural resources.

Yay Texas.

[TrollBuster9090]

7. Well, those oil plutocrats certainly got a good return on their investment.

Their investment in buying a government, I mean. Not the oil. Only an IDIOT could loose money drilling for oil. (ie-George W. Bush, and Arbusto Oil.)

[malokvale77]

8. "Their investment in buying a government"

That they did. This however did not stop in Texas.

Wake up America (I said America because this does not stop at US borders), they are stealing our common resources and killing us in the process.

[TrollBuster9090]

9. Absolutely. I didn't mean to suggest that ownership of government by plutocrats is a Texas thing.

The entire U.S. Government is a bought and paid-for asset of Koch Industries.

[malokvale77]

10. Absolutely

I didn't mean to imply that was your suggestion.

I was pointing out that this goes beyond the US borders, into Canada, South America and Central America.

In other words, all of the Americas.

We're on the same page here.